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The Garden of Invention: Luther Burbank and the Business of Breeding Plants
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The Garden of Invention: Luther Burbank and the Business of Breeding Plants Paperback - 2010

by Jane S. Smith

A delightful narrative history of the celebrated plant-breeder Luther Burbank in early 20th-century America, "The Garden of Invention" is a colorful and engrossing examination of gardening, science, and business in the years between the Civil War and the Great Depression.


Summary

The wide-ranging and delightful history of celebrated plant breeder Luther Burbank and the business of farm and garden in early twentieth- century America

At no other time in history has there been more curiosity or concern about the food we eat-and genetically modified foods, in particular, have become both pervasive and suspect. A century ago, however, Luther Burbank's blight-resistant potatoes, white blackberries, and plumcots-a plum-apricot hybrid-were celebrated as triumphs in the best tradition of American ingenuity and perseverance. In his experimental grounds in Santa Rosa, California, Burbank bred and cross-bred edible and ornamental plants-for both home gardens and commercial farms-until they were bigger, hardier, more beautiful, and more productive than ever before. A fascinating portrait of an American original, The Garden of Invention is also a colorful and engrossing tale of the intersection of gardening, science and business in the years between the Civil War and the Great Depression.



From the publisher

The wide-ranging and delightful history of celebrated plant breeder Luther Burbank and the business of farm and garden in early twentieth- century America At no other time in history has there been more curiosity or concern about the food we eat-and genetically modified foods, in particular, have become both pervasive and suspect. A century ago, however, Luther Burbank's blight-resistant potatoes, white blackberries, and plumcots-a plum-apricot hybrid-were celebrated as triumphs in the best tradition of American ingenuity and perseverance. In his experimental grounds in Santa Rosa, California, Burbank bred and cross-bred edible and ornamental plants-for both home gardens and commercial farms-until they were bigger, hardier, more beautiful, and more productive than ever before. A fascinating portrait of an American original, The Garden of Invention is also a colorful and engrossing tale of the intersection of gardening, science and business in the years between the Civil War and the Great Depression.

Details

  • Title The Garden of Invention: Luther Burbank and the Business of Breeding Plants
  • Author Jane S. Smith
  • Binding Paperback
  • Edition First Edition Fi
  • Pages 368
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Penguin Books, New York, NY
  • Date 2010-02-23
  • Illustrated Yes
  • ISBN 9780143116899 / 0143116894
  • Weight 0.7 lbs (0.32 kg)
  • Dimensions 7.9 x 5.3 x 0.9 in (20.07 x 13.46 x 2.29 cm)
  • Ages 18 to UP years
  • Grade levels 13 - UP
  • Themes
    • Chronological Period: 1900-1949
    • Chronological Period: 1851-1899
  • Dewey Decimal Code 630.92

Media reviews



Citations

  • New York Times Book Review, 03/14/2010, Page 22
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The Garden of Invention: Luther Burbank and the Business of Breeding Plants
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The Garden of Invention: Luther Burbank and the Business of Breeding Plants

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The Garden of Invention: Luther Burbank and the Business of Breeding Plants

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by Jane S. Smith

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